Royal Blues
by Shira
Summary: Just another fluffy lil Zel/Ame ficcie to help settle my over active romantic side... ^^
1. Truth

_Ah-ha!!! Here's another Zel/Ame ficcie to make up for absolutely NO Zel/Ame in Dragonsword... So, here it is!! Read on, folkies!!! Folkies? Where'd that come from?? *shrug* Anyway, enjoy, peoples! ^_^_

Zelgadis took a steadying breath. He had finally gotten up the courage to tell Amelia. He'd never been able to before, but being in the Seyruun castle with just her, with no Lina making snide remarks... Things just added up, and he knew he was ready. He had to tell her now. 

"Amelia," he started. They were both sitting on the sofa in the resting room, right beside the fire. Amelia turned to face him, her bright eyes curious. "I have to tell you something, Amelia," he said. 

"What is it, Zelgadis-san?" Amelia asked. 

Again, Zelgadis steeled himself, and said, "Amelia, I--" 

Before Zelgadis could finish what he was saying, the door to the resting room burst open, and one of the counselors of the court dashed in. "There you are, princess," the man said, huffing for breath. "We've looked all over for you. You know we have to talk about the suitor business! You have to marry a prince soon, and..." While he had been talking, the counselor had grabbed Amelia's arm, and dragged her out of the room. The rest of his ranting was lost as he took Amelia further away. 

Zelgadis's spirits plummeted through the floor. He had almost-- ALMOST --forgotten that Amelia had to marry a prince. A prince! Furious, Zelgadis shoved himself out of the sofa, and stalked angrily out of the resting room, out of the west wing, and out of the palace. He self-consciously pulled up his mask and hood so no one would see his face. 

How could he have let himself forget Amelia had to marry a prince? And he'd been about to blab everything to her, only to have it end up as nothing because... Because... Nothing could ever HAPPEN between the two of them, because Amelia had to marry a prince. 

What was he thinking about? Of course nothing would HAPPEN, whether Amelia had to marry a prince or not. There was no way anything could HAPPEN. How could he have been so stupid? He realized then that, if he HAD spilled it all to Amelia, it would have been hell on earth anyway. Amelia was a princess, while he was a chimera. Even if she didn't have to marry, she still wouldn't want anything more than a friendship-- if even that --with someone like him. 

Zelgadis's step was now slow, dragged, and glum. He searched around for something to do, somewhere to go. His roving eyes stopped on a tavern just outside the walls of the city. He was at the edge of the city already? He must have stalked quicker than he'd thought. 

But a tavern? In Seyruun? Well, technically, it was outside Seyruun, being outside the walls. A tavern was the perfect place to go when he was in a mood like that. He could drown out his miseries with alcohol and forget he'd even thought of telling Amelia anything. Then he could go back to having a nice friendship with Amelia, and staying at the palace. 

With determination and resolution, Zelgadis shuffled over to the tavern. He absently noted that there was a forest on the other side of it, across from the city. Strange. He hadn't thought the forest was that close to the city's walls. Oh, well... 

Zelgadis turned the handle of the door, and stepped into the dark, smoky, smelly room. He stepped across the floor to the bar, and sat down in an empty stool. When the bartender asked him what he wanted, he just said, "I don't care. Something strong." 

"Girl trouble?" the bartender asked as he set down a tall mug of strong ale in front of Zelgadis. 

Nodding, Zelgadis realized that he couldn't drink with his mask up. So he took it down, but still left his hood on, trusting that to conceal him enough. He took a deep swig of ale, and felt it go straight to his head. Good. He wanted to forget everything. 


	2. Search

_Poor Zelly-chan!!! *sniffle* You know, he shouldn't be drinking... *shrug* ANYWAY!!! Here's more..._

Amelia pulled away from the counselor, and faced him directly. "Listen," she said, with an uncharacteristic angry note to her voice. "I don't WANT to talk about suitors! I don't WANT to marry some spoiled, selfish, stuck-up, good-for-nothing, snobby, stubborn PRINCE!! I don't WANT to marry someone I don't know!" He voice softened, and she said, "When I marry, I want it to be to my true love, like in the stories!" 

"Stories are just stories," the counselor said sharply. "Nothing in life ever goes according to the storybooks, princess. Besides, your father wants you to--" 

"Then let DADDY talk to me," Amelia said. "YOU shouldn't pressure me into this! If Daddy wants me to marry an unknown prince, then Daddy will talk to me about marrying an unknown prince. Until then, I don't wanna talk about it! Okay?" 

Slowly, the counselor nodded, not used to seeing Amelia in a mood like that. Amelia nodded once, smiling at her success, and spun on one heel to go back to the resting room. Zelgadis had been about to tell her something, and it seemed important. 

But when Amelia got back to the resting room, it was empty. Zelgadis wasn't there. Where had he gone? Quickly, Amelia dashed out of the resting room, and darted all around the palace, looking for him. Where'd he go? When she didn't find him, she started searching the immediate area around the palace-- libraries, stores, anything. But he wasn't there. Where'd he go? Amelia started looking all over the city, but still she didn't find him. WHERE'D HE GO?!? 

Amelia was running along the city's edge, when she saw a brown brick building outside the wall. She stopped dead in her tracks, and looked at it with a curious expression on her face. Had Zelgadis gone there? But, it was a tavern! Why would Zelgadis go to a tavern? But, he wasn't anywhere else, so... 

Without another second of hesitation, Amelia levitated over the city's wall, and made a beeline dash for the tavern. 

* * *

About an hour later, Zelgadis had almost forgotten everything. The drunken men around him were getting friendly, and started chatting amiably to him, even though it was obvious he didn't feel at all like talking. 

"Hey, I won'er wha' he's got un'er tha' there hood?" slurred one of the men from beside Zelgadis. 

"Yeah," another man drawled. "He ha'n't takin it off once yet." 

From the other end of the tavern, two sparsely-clad women came up and stood behind him, each with a hand on one of his shoulders. He tried to shrug them off, but they didn't leave. "Get away," he growled irately. 

"But we wanna see your face," one of the women said. 

"Yeah, take it off? For me?" the other pleaded. 

"No," Zelgadis said shortly. 

Both women pouted, and the first said, "Fine!" Then she reached forward and yanked down Zelgadis's hood. Zelgadis slowly turned to face the both of them. To his shock, they didn't gasp or scream or point. Instead, the first woman said, "Wow. You're cool..." 

Zelgadis blinked in confusion. All the alcohol was slowing his brain down. He was just about to shove the women away from him again, when the door opened. Everyone turned to greet the newcomer. 

"Zelgadi--" 

Slowly, Zelgadis faced the door. It was Amelia! 


	3. Chase

_Gasp and horror! What will Amelia think? Seeing Zel in a tavern, mostly drunk, with two Nahga wanna-be's hovering around him?? *shakes head* This cannot be good... _

Amelia took one look at Zelgadis, with the nearly-naked women on either side of him, and the tall mug-- his fifth one --on the bar in front of him. Then she turned and ran away from the tavern. 

Immediately, Zelgadis struggled out of his stool, knocking it over in the process. "Amel--" He cut himself off with a groan, and had to steady himself against the wall with one hand. All that alcohol was making his head spin, and he couldn't seem to catch his balance. But he had to catch up to Amelia. 

After a moment, Zelgadis could stand up, and he dashed out the door. As soon as he was out, everyone stumbled out of there stools, and stood at the door or windows, watching Zelgadis chase Amelia. They were both heading right for the woods. The tavern occupants were intrigued. Usually, when a guy came to drink away girl issues, the girl never came back. This was new to them, and they wanted to see how it turned out. 

Zelgadis staggered a bit, and nearly stumbled once or twice. "Wait! 'Melia! Stop!" 

Amelia, who was just about to run into the woods, turned around to face him. She stayed still long enough for Zelgadis to catch up with her. "What were you doing in there, Zelgadis-san?" Amelia demanded when Zelgadis was close enough. "One: you were drinking! Drinking is bad! That's why there aren't any taverns in Seyruun! So people won't be bad and drink! Two: Those women! Didn't you know they were prostitutes? And what were you doing with them anyway? You shouldn't BE with people like that! They're bad, bad people! And people will think you're bad if you hang around with them! Three: Why'd you run off like that? I came back in a minute, and then you were gone! I looked all over the palace and the city for you before I found you in there with those-- those-- evil people! Well?" she asked when Zelgadis didn't say anything in protest. "What have you got to say for yourself, Zelgadis-san?" 

Zelgadis had nothing to say. The alcohol had finally gotten to him. His head swam and made everything around him spin dizzyingly. To his chagrin, he began to sway, and would have fallen if Amelia hadn't caught him. 

"I should have let you fall," Amelia muttered as she dragged him over to a tree at the edge of the forest. Then she propped him up against the trunk, and said, "Dicleary." The green vapor rose up from Zelgadis's chest, and evaporated into nothing. 

At once, the dizziness and the spinning disappeared, and Zelgadis felt his mind clearing. "Thank you," he said, and then, "I'm sorry." 

Amelia sat down on the other side of the wide tree, and said, "You have some explaining to do, Zelgadis-san!" 

Zelgadis took a breath, and started at the beginning. "I just had to tell you something... important," he began. "I had finally gotten up the nerve to tell you... But then the counselor came, and gave me a shove back into reality. I was angry at myself, and I stalked out of the palace. Then I found myself at the borders of Seyruun, and saw the tavern. I figured I could forget everything and go back to how things were before I realized..." 

"Realized what, Zelgadis-san?" Amelia asked. 

"That..." Zelgadis started. He'd have to tell her, he knew. 

"And why'd you get angry when the counselor started talking about a suitor?" Amelia inquired before Zelgadis could answer. 

Again, Zelgadis started to speak. "I got angry because-- Because I realized that you had to marry a prince, and that..." Did he dare say it? COULD he say it? It would change him whole life if he did... Would it be for better or for worse? 

"That what?" Amelia wondered. 

"That... That I..." Zelgadis began. "I..." How to say it? "I care for you," he said lamely. "No! More than that... I... I love you." There! He said it! It felt like a great weight was taken off of his shoulders, having had admitted it. 

There was a long, long pause after he said that. When he was getting concerned, Amelia asked incredulously, a note of shock and wonder in her voice, "You... You love me?" 

Zelgadis said, "Yeah... I do." 

Amelia crawled around the tree, and sat facing Zelgadis. "Really?" she asked, not really daring to believe it. 

Nodding, Zelgadis said with a smile, "Really." 

Instantly, Amelia's eyes filled with tears, and a half-sad smile broke across her face. "I love you, too, Zelgadis-san, I really really do, only..." She sniffed once, and said, "Only, I... I have to marry a prince, and... And..." She then broke down, crying, sobbing that she wasn't allowed to marry for true love. Zelgadis awkwardly took Amelia into his arms, and let her cry. 

"Maybe..." he started to suggest when Amelia's tears died down a bit. "Maybe we can make the best of the time we have before you have to marry?" 

Amelia looked up from his shirt, her tearstained face hopeful. "You think so?" she asked, her voice cracking a bit. 

Zelgadis nodded, and said, "I think-- if you agree --that we should take advantage of the time before you have to marry a prince, and..." He trailed off, realizing that he maybe only had a year, at the most, before Amelia had to marry some stuck-up, insensitive, no-good, stubborn, selfish, smart-aleck, fancy-pants, brainless, idiotic prince. 

Slowly, Amelia nodded in return, and blinked away her tears. She wiped her face with the back of her hand, and said, "I'm sorry... I didn't mean to cry all over you, Zelgadis-san." She made a move to back away, but Zelgadis didn't let go. He couldn't let her go, not when they had so little time together. 

Carefully, Zelgadis drew Amelia closer, their eyes locked. He loosened his hold on her a bit, just in case she wanted to pull back. But she didn't. Instead, she tilted her head just a little, and her eyes drooped closed... 


	4. Deal

_Kiss scene coming up!! Right? That's what you're thinking, right?? *shrug* Yeah... Anyway, so KAWAII! They ahd to get back together... And, if you know me even a TINY bit, you know that all my ficcies end HAPPY!!! ^_^_

"Amelia!" 

Zelgadis and Amelia gasped, and jumped apart, both of them blushing furiously. They turned to see who had called out, and found-- 

"Daddy?!" Amelia asked incredulously. 

Indeed, Prince Phil was running and huffing across the grass over to the two of them. When he reached them, he stopped, his hands on his knees, to catch his breath. Then he looked down at Amelia, and grinned widely. "You know," he said. "Amelia, I spoke with your head counselor today, on the subject of your suitor--" 

"Daddy, I don't--" 

"He told me," Phil continued. "That you said you wanted to marry your true love, just like in the storybooks. Well, I thought that was so innocent, and sweet, just what I'd expect from a delicate-souled little girl like you, my daughter, Then I got to thinking. It's so important these days for children's dreams to come true, so I thought we could reach a compromise. If you can find your true love before the end of the year, then you can marry him. If not, then your counselor will pick a suitor for you. I do hope your storybook marriage works out, daughter." 

Amelia stared up at her dad for a moment, before an expression of incredulity and joy spread across her face. "Daddy! Thank you so MUCH!!" She jumped up and hugged her dad tight around his waist. "Daddy, I already found my true love, really I did! It isn't EXACTLY like the stories, especially how I found it out, but I do love him Daddy, I really really do!" 

"Well, who is it?" Phil asked, looking around as if he expected to find him right around there. 

"It's Zelgadis-san, Daddy!" Amelia cried out. 

"That charming young man?" Phil asked, smiling. "He's such an honorable soul, like you, but he doesn't know it yet. And you say you love him? Does he love you? He does? That's PERFECT, daughter! You'll have your storybook marriage after all! Like I said, it's important for kids to have dreams come true. Now, where is this Zelgadis character?" 

Amelia laughed, and said, "He's right there, Daddy." She pointed over at the tree where Zelgadis was still sitting, dumb struck at the conversation that had just taken place. 

Phil lumbered over there, and grabbed both of Zelgadis's hands in his. He hauled him up to his feet before he shook his hands energetically, proclaiming that he never would have thought it, but the two of them seemed a fine couple indeed, and Zelgadis was such a young, carefree youth, strong and fit enough to rule Seyruun when the time came, and the wedding would be grand indeed. 

After much more ranting, Phil decided to head back to the palace. So, after a last hug from Amelia, he hurried back to the palace, telling "the two love birds" that they could stay out as late as they wished. 

As soon as Phil was out of sight, Amelia jumped up, and threw her arms around Zelgadis's neck. "YAY!!" she shouted, laughing. 

Zelgadis put his hands on her back to keep her from falling. He was about to ask her something, but his words were cut off. Amelia, in her ecstasy, planted a kiss right on Zelgadis's mouth, before shouting and laughing again, and burying her face in Zelgadis's shoulder, holding onto him like she'd never let go. 

A little stunned, Zelgadis nearly dropped Amelia, but caught her again before she did. He held onto her just as tightly as she did him, amazed at both Phil and Amelia. 

Back at the tavern, the occupants clapped and cheered that the two of them got back together. They had been more than a little shocked when they realized the giant hairy dwarf was Prince Philionel el de Seyruun, and the small girl was his daughter, the princess. 

The only people that weren't happy for Zelgadis were the two women who were dressed remarkably like Nahga. They were in a corner, crying and sobbing all over themselves because "their" cool-looking guy had run off with the princess. 

The bartender found a piece of blue-ish wire on the table, which was no doubt a strand of Zelgadis's hair, and he stapled it to the mantle over his counter. Whenever anyone came to the tavern, he told that story, explaining that good things could happen from drinking too much. Over time, his story was embellished and retold so many times, that only the basic plot of the story remained. People today know the story now as the tale of "The Beauty and the Beast." 


End file.
